Pennsylvania is dedicating more money to repair roads damaged by the cold season as part of its Resurface PA initiative. The program was started by Gov. Tom Wolf in May to patch damage from the winter season.
Since January, the state has spent $41 million on filling potholes, and plans to use $31 million more to remedy the issue through October.
Resurface PA also expedited planned resurfacing projects. PennDOT spokesman Rich Kirkpatrick says 1,800 miles of roads have been repaved this year.
"In the Pittsburgh region, people can see repaving work going on the Parkway East, between the Fort Pitt Bridge and Edgewood," he said. "That's a $26 million contract that got accelerated by this program."
Other repaired state routes in Allegheny County include Interstate 79 and routes 19, 22 and 51. The newly paved roads are expected to stay largely pothole-free for five to six years.
Kirkpatrick noted this past winter was particularly bad for potholes, which the city of Pittsburgh acknowleged back in February. During one pothole-filling-blitz, city workers repaired 1,700 in 30 days.
According to PennDOT, 15,000 pothole complaints have made their way to the department since January -- twice the amount received last year during the same time frame. The state has used more than 109,000 tons of patching treatment to fill potholes across the state this year.
PennDOT maintains about 40,000 miles of road, which according to Kirkpatrick is the same distance as driving between the east coast and San Francisco 14 times.
"Not every mile of roadway can get the high level treatment we're doing on the interstate," Kirkpatrick said. "It's an ongoing challenge."
